Receptacle



P. BERNI RECEPTACLE Jung; 1, 1937.

Filed July 17, 1956 Patented Julie 1, 1931 UNITED STAT-EslPATENT OFFICE RECEPTACLE Philip mnh-Dennison, Ohio, assignmoi one- .hali' to James M. Cahaney, Dennison, Ohio Application July 11, 193s, serai No. 91,235 schim. '(ci. zzo-4s) The present invention: relates to improvements in food containers and has for its primary object to provide a suitable receptacle capable of resisting chemical action and consequent deterioration of the food productsfwhich may be sealed therein where the receptacle is made of metal.

A further object in view is the provision in a receptacle 'of this type of an opening means being readily breakable or severable to enable the forming a part of the wall ofthe container, which means is so constructed and arranged as toA be readily depressed to thereby eect penetration and cutting of an opening in the package through which the contents may be poured or dispensed.

A still further object of the invention is to` provide a new article of manufacture in the form of a cutting tab, especially for receptacles of nonmetallic material, said tab being inthe nature of a. separate adjunct, but having means for connecting it to the wall ofthe receptacle so as to enablekit to produce an opening in the receptacle through which the contents may be dispensed or poured. y

In carrying out the foregoingobjectives, the container is preferably provided with a lining of some transparent material having suillcient strength and imperviousness to liquid to seal the contents of the receptacle against access of air, while at the same time offering a complete resistance to attack uponl the material of which the container is composed. One wall of said container is formedA or/Jprovidedwith a tab having at one end a penetrating or cutting point or edge, so connected to the Wall of the container as to be normally sustained in a closed. position, the supporting connections for the penetrating point point vto be pressed inwardly, as by means of the thumb, and to thereby rupture the lining of the receptacle without necessarily requiring a special cutting implement for opening said,` container.

Other and further objects an'd advantages of the invention will be hereinafter set forth and the novel features thereof deiined by the appended claims.

mthedrawing: g

Fig. 1 is a perspective view oi' a can or container constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged top plan `view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view showing in dotted lines the position assumed by the opening `tab when depressed to cut through the lining,

Fig. 4 is a perspectiveview oi a modified form of the invention, wherein the cutting tab is in the form of an attachment and applied to a receptacle of non-metallic material;

Figs. 5, 6, 'Iv and 8 are fragmentary section views taken on the lines 55, 6 6, '|-1, and 5 8 8, respectively, of Fig. 4; and Fig. 9 is a fragmentary plan view of a still further modiication ofthe invention.

Like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several gures of the draw- 10 ing.

Referring to the drawing and particularly to Figs. 1 to 3 thereof, I designates a container, preferably of tin or like material, having top and bottom closures 2 and 3 crimped in the usual 15 manner to seal the ends of the can. These parts `of the container, before crimping, have applied thereto alining material 4 of cellophane preierably, well known for its strength and imperviousness to air and moisture, so that when the closure ends are crimped in position for closing the container, this lining material will fold in with the crimped seams, thereby establishing an air tight and leak proof joint suillcient for preserving the contents of the container, which may be either liquid, semi-liquid or dry, such as found in the ordinary foodstuffs at present enclosed in such receptacles.

An important feature of the construction of the form in the above mentioned ngures resides in the provision of a simple opening means forming a part of one of the end closures. The top 2 to this end is formed with a .tab 5, so called for the purposes of this description, as by means oi cutting the metal along the parallel lines 6--8 35 and then along the converging lines 1-1. These lconverging lines do not meet. that is to say, a

the neck connection 8. Theconverging edges of the point, upon continued downward movement, 4will penetrate or cut the lining material l and provide a'pouring opening at 4the peripheral portion of the top.

If desired, the side wall of, the receptacle may be-provided with a window as shown in Fig. 1 at' 5@ 9, or a series of openings separated by narrow strips, through which the contents of the container can be observed, it being understood that the windows only extend through the metal so as to expose the lining materiaT which covers eration of the opening of the container.

55./rv made of relatively thin gauge metal, it is readily the windows and enables the contents to be observed. 'Ihis type of package may be used for numerous articles or food products and it eliminates the cutting operation by can openers in the art of metal receptacles. Since the bendable ,tab E may be stamped in at the time of stamping out the top member, practically` no additional expense is entailed in the construction of this form of the invention. v

Passing now to the disclosure in Figs. 4 to 8, a modification. of this invention particularly for receptacles of non-metallic material is presented. In this form, the receptacle la is provided with a cellophanelining 4a that forms a closure at the top of the can. In the actual use of this invention, the lining may be in the form of 4an inverted bag into which the contents of the receptacle are placed before the bottom of the con- 'tainer is applied. At the top, the container is then provided with a capZa of the slip type or friction type 'and this cap, when disposed upon the top, forms a protection for the lining 4a at the yopening end.

The cap is slit at the points a, b, c and d and preferably vcut out at e in a shape which conforms to the body portion of a tab-like member 5a of 'special construction. This tab is in the form of a tongue and has lateral extensions l0 at one end which are designed to be slipped `through the slits a and b, respectively, and crimped, as more clearly shown in Fig. 8, against the underface of the cap 2a. The tab or cutting member at its opposite end is provided with an attaching section Il to which the neck 8a is attached and the section Il is provided with extensions I2 which are bendable to slip about the topA material of the cap as' described with reference to the extensions l0 at'the other end and as clearly shown in Fig. 6 of the drawing. The body portion of the tab member is similar in shape to the tab 5 of the preferred form and will obviously be held over the opening e by the attaching means at either end as above described.

When it is desired to open this receptacle to remove the contents, sufllcient pressure is exerted upon the tapered or pointed extremity of the tab to break the neck connection 8a, allowing the point of the tab to cut'through the lining in the manner described above in connection with the preferred form. In this instance, the tab or cutting device is a separate adjunct that lmaybe readily applied to a container device in the course of manufacture for simplifying the op- Being bendable and breakable for the purposes of the invention, as above described.

A still further form of the invention is illustrated in Fig. 9 of the drawing wherein the top of the can. may be cut out with.V arcuate slits I3y spaced from each other by very narrow necks 8bk preferably for approximately one-half of the cir- I do not wish to be confined to the specic illustrations herein referred to.

Having thus described my' invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A receptacle of the class described compris-- ing side and end walls, one of said end walls having a flexible opening-forming cutter member tapering substantially to a point at one end t0 provide a penetrating point with cutting edges diverging therefrom, said member being adapted to iiex intermediate its length upon application of pressure at said point to render the cutting edges effective when depressed into the receptacle to provide a pour opening, said members having a exible connection with the end wall at one end anda frangible connection with the end wall at the point end, said cutter member being separate from the end wall from the bendable connection to the frangible connection, and a liner for said receptacle in which the Vopening is to be made by the cutter member.

2. A receptacle of the class described comprisng side and end walls, a closure member for said receptacle, a lining of impervious material applied to the walls of the receptacle, said closure member having a depressible cutter tab cut from the material thereof along its side and approximately to a point at one end so as to leave a connecting'neck at the said point, said point being depressible to flex the tab inwardly at the point to eiect a point penetration of the lining following with a cutting action of the edges of the tab.

3. In a receptacle of the class described', a I

closure member for one end thereof having spaced tongue-receiving slits, a cutter tab having flexible extensions at one end to engage in certain of vsaid slits and a tapering point providing a cutting edge at its other end, saldiI last mentioned end being provided with an attaching section having extensions to engage in certain ofthe slits, the connection between said tab and attaching section comprising a narrow frangible neck 

